Anyone else find that clutter makes them cranky?
For me, this is especially true right now. We are spending so much time working and eating and sleeping and relaxing in the same 1000 square feet apartment. If there’s stuff everywhere, I start to feel like the walls are closing in. But if things are relatively tidy, I feel calmer and more focused.
If you, too, are sick of looking at clutter because you cannot leave your one-bedroom apartment, here are some easy tips to get organized. You don’t have to do them all. Just pick one to start. You might find yourself feeling a little less frantic. Bonus: nearly all of these are totally free!
Quick Tips to Get Organized
If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it
If your space isn’t bothering you? Use your energy for something else. You do not have to redecorate just because other people are. Your home does not have to look like a professional organized every room with the sole purpose of showing it off on Instagram. You do not have to follow every must-have hack on Pinterest.
Your house is there for you, to provide you a comfortable and functional space from which to carry out your life. It only has to work for you and your people.
Start small
Do not go on a rampage and try to fix everything. You’ll probably lose motivation mid-way through browsing shelves on Etsy and leave things worse than when you started. Instead, start small. Very small. Pick the problem that’s bothering you the most and start there. Maybe it’s that one drawer that drives you crazy. The annoying closet door that doesn’t close properly. The avalanche in your medicine cabinet. Tackle just that one thing.
Ditch the clutter
If you read any how-to guide with tips to get organized, it will probably mention this. But it’s true. You won’t feel organized if you have a ton of excess stuff that you don’t actually want or need. There are tons of methods for this. You can follow Marie Kondo’s method of only keeping things that spark joy. You can follow the old saying “Do not keep anything that you do not know to be useful or believe to be beautiful.”
This is great. But honestly? You can figure out what to toss without a fancy method. Start with one small space. Go through all of the items in that space. Like it? Keep it. Don’t like it? Donate or toss it. Just do the thing. You got this.
Want more tips to get your closet organized? Click here!
Make a home for everything.
If you feel unorganized, it may be because your things don’t have homes. Random floating junk accumulates when you have to constantly make decisions about where things go. Should these receipts go in a drawer or on the counter? If you’re in a rush to get your ice cream in the freezer before it melts, it’s going to be too hard to decide that. You’re going to let them collect all over the place, or they’ll stay shoved at the bottom of your purse. So make the decision once by giving the random stuff a home.
Actually putting those things where they belong automatically? Now that’s another matter. But knowing where they should go is a start.
Group like with like
If you’re struggling to figure out homes for your items, group similar things together. Reorganizing a linen closet? Keep the cleaning products and the cleaning rags next to each other. Sorting through your pantry? Put all the snacks on the same shelf.
If you feel like something in a space isn’t working, this might be the culprit. See if there’s any way to further streamline. Can you narrow down your categories?
Contain the clutter
Designate containers for the everyday detritus we all collect that’s never featured in home magazines but is part of our daily lives. This is a good time to pay attention to your clutter habits. Always drop your keys and mail on the kitchen counter? Set out a tray specifically for that purpose. Leave your earrings on your dresser every night? Grab a small bowl so they don’t get lost. Collecting a random assortment of perfumes on your bathroom counter? Find a cute tray and call it decor.
If you have an area like a dresser drawer or closet shelf where your items are contained but still feel messy, you might need smaller containers within the larger one. Using a shoe box to corral all your swimming suits in your dresser or adding a bin on your linen closet shelf for cleaning supplies might be all it takes for you to gain a measure of sanity back.
Now, this is the time to address this very important point. Let me say this very loudly and clearly: YOU DO NOT HAVE TO HAVE MATCHING BOXES TO BE AN ORGANIZED PERSON.
I mean, yes, looking like you live in a Container Store display might make you feel more organized. But it doesn’t actually make you more organized.
If you’ve watched the show Tidying Up with Marie Kondo, you may have noticed that she does not arrive at people’s houses carrying the entire inventory of the Container Store. Instead, she encourages people to use shoe boxes and other small containers that they already have.
You can do the same.
And if you do have to buy stuff? That’s cool. But do it ONLY after you’ve figured out what you have and where you want it to go. Your containers need to serve your stuff. Your stuff shouldn’t have serve its containers.
Think outside the box
These simple hooks are my favorite organizing tool. I hang up nice purses in my closet, hats in the coat closet, plastic bags in the linen closet, pans and oven mitts in the kitchen…we have them in almost every room.
I have also use over-the-door shoe organizers for so many things. In addition to organizing shoes, I’ve used them to stash craft supplies, stow scarves, and organize belts. You could also use them to hold cords, chargers, or cleaning supplies
Adding a shelf to expand your storage in a cluttered area is also an easy fix.
Add a label
This is not just to show off your great handwriting. If you happen to be your home’s Chief Organizing Officer, this is to save your sanity. Because you can only be asked where the spare headphones are so many times before you lose your ever-loving mind.
You can use a label maker, create a cute label with paper, or just scrawl on a drawer with a regular old Sharpie. (Though I’ll be honest and say you should splurge for the oil-based paint Sharpies. They work way better.)
If it will take less than two minutes, do it now
One two-minute task is doable. Ten two-minute tasks all piled up and waiting for you at the end of the day might make you want to cry.
Unless someone is on fire, you have time to do a two-minute task. So hang up your purse or put away that jacket or put the glass in the dishwasher.
I sometimes suck at this. But I am always grateful when I follow through.
A reminder
You don’t have to use all of these tips to get organized. Just pick one to start. One small change can have an amazing impact on your sanity and the appearance of your space. And seeing the results from that one tiny change can motivate you to keep going!
Now go forth and conquer those cluttered spaces! You’ve totally got this.